Life-preserver.



No. 721,813. PATENTBD MAR. s, 1903.

I. W. MAGCOLINI. LIFE PRESERVER.

APPLIGA TIONIILED MAY 21, 1902.

Arm/Mrs UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

ICILIUS W. MAOCOLINI, OF LONG ISLAND, NEW YORK.

LlFE-PRESERVER.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 721,813, dated March 3, 1903. Application filed May 21, 1902. $erial No. 108,391. (No model) T0 at whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, IoILIUs W. MAoooLmI, a citizen of the United States, residing at Long Island, in the county of Queensand State of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Life-Preservers, of which the following is a full and complete specification, such as will enable those skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same. I

The object of this invention is to provide an improved life-preserver which is simple in construction and operation and which may be worn underneath an ordinary body-garment or over said body-garment or without any body-garment, a further object being to provide a life-preserver which consists of two similar sleeve members which are adapted to be inflated and which are connected by a transverse neck member having a neck-opening, whereby the separate sleeve members are held in proper position when in use; and with these and other objects in View the invention consists in a life-preserver constructed as hereinafter described and claimed.

In the drawings forming part of this specification, in which the separate parts of my improvement are designated by the same reference characters in each of the views, Figure 1 is a front elevation of the upper part of the human body and showing the application and use of myimproved life-preserver; Fig. 2, a cross-section of one of the sleeves of the life-preserver on the line 2 2 of Fig. 1, and Fig. 3 a plan view of the neck portion of the device by which the separate sleeve members are connected.

In the practice of my invention I provide a life-preserver comprising two similar sleeve members a, through which the arms are adapted to be passed and which are adapted to fit the upper portions of the arms and which are composed of two separate partsan outer part a and aninner part a each of which is composed of rubber, canvas, or any other suitable material which is air and water tight or may be made air and water tight, and these parts a and a are connected at the upper and lower end of the separate sleeve members a, at a and M. The outer part a is larger in cross-section than the inner'part a whereby a space a is formed between said parts, and this space in each sleeve member is adapted to be filled with air under pressure, or said sleeve members a are adapted to be inflated, and for this pupose I prefer to employ a flexible tube 1), which is connected with eachsleeve member, preferably near the top thereof, and is provided with a flexible branch tube b with which is connected a combination valve and mouthpiece c of any preferred construction, and by placing the mouthpiece c in the mouth and blowing through the tube b or branch tube b the sleeve members a may be fully inflated.

The sleeve members a are connected by a neck member cl, having a neck-opening (1 and one side of this neck member, preferably the back side, is open, as shown at (1 and one of the parts thus formed is provided with a button d and the other with a buttonhole d, or any suitable fastening device may be substituted for the button 01 and the buttonhole 01 The neck member is also provided with side projections or extending parts (1, which are connected with the sleeves to at of, and the neck member d, together with the side parts d thereof, may be composed of canvas or any suitable textile material.

As shown in the drawings, the flexible inflating-tubes Z) and b are exposed and extend preferably across the breast; but the tube b may, if desired, be passed through the neck member d, as indicated in dotted lines at e, in which event the portion 6 thereof will be passed outwardly through the central frontportion of said neck member. Any other suitable means for inflating the sleeve members a may be employed, as my invention is not limited to this feature of the construction, the said invention being limited to the sleeve members a, constructed as described and adapted to be inflated and connected by the neck member (1, having a neck-opening d As thus constructed it will be seen that the life preserver may be quickly and easily placed in use and may be used without any kind of a body-garment, or may be used under and be concealed by a body-garment, or may be used over a body-garment, and it will be apparent that the sleeve members a may be of any suitable length; but in practice the said sleeve members are not to be longer than the upper part of the arm or are not to extend below the elbow when the life-preserver is in use.

This invention is simple in construction and comparatively inexpensive and may be packed in a small space and may be conveniently carried in a satchel or any other suitable receptacle, and the capacity of the sleeve members a may be such as to prevent any person from sinking, whether said person be able to swim or not.

Having fully described my invention, what I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

1. A life-preserver comprising two hollow flexible sleeve shaped members through which the arms are adapted to be passed, said members being adapted to fit the upper arm and being connected by a transverse neck member open at one side, and means for inflating said sleeve members, substantially as shown and described.

2. A life-preserver comprising two hollow flexible sleeve shaped members through which the arms are adapted to be passed, said members being connected by a transverse neck member open at one side, and means for inflating said sleeve members, said means consisting of a flexible tube connected with each of said sleeve members and through which air is forced to inflate said members, substantially as shown and described.

In testimony that I claim the foregoing as my invention I have signed my name, in presence of the subscribing witnesses, this 19th day of May, 1902.

ICILIUS W. MACCOLINI.

Witnesses:

T. A. STEWART, O. E. MULREANY. 

